CASIE

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About CASIE

Appreciation and Acknowledgements

A heartfelt note of thanks goes out to those individuals who attended and joined in the past CSSE Aboriginal assemblies to share their thoughts, perspectives, time, energies, and hopes for the development and establishment of an Aboriginal/Indigenous association within the CSSE. This reality is a welcomed development by professors, students, researchers and practitioners in Aboriginal/Indigenous education.

Canadian Association for the Study of Indigenous Education (CASIE)

CASIE promotes the study and dialogue of professors, students, researchers and practioners in the field of Aboriginal/Indigenous education. CASIE is a constituent association of the Canadian Society for the Study of Education (CSSE). The purpose of the Aboriginal association as noted in the CASIE by-laws is listed as follows:

to foster the exchange of ideas about ongoing research and development in Aboriginal/Indigenous (hereafter Indigenous) Education in Canada.

to provide a forum for discussion of Indigenous education studies in a Canadian context.

to encourage the publication of papers and reports of scholarly work in Indigenous education

to bring together members whose disciplines are quite diverse but who maintain a common interest in Indigenous education.

to foster and encourage commitment to research priorities of Indigenous peoples and their communities and respectful research processes and protocols with/in Canadian life-wide and life-long educational spheres.

Introduction

At the 2008 CSSE conference, a motion to request an Aboriginal association was put to the assembly to vote for the newly formed Canadian Association for the Study of Indigenous Education (CASIE). The motion was carried. CASIE is now another national constituent association within the Canadian Society for the Study of Education (CSSE). CASIE executive for the 2008/09 year comprise of the following individuals: Laara Fitznor, University of Manitoba; Dwayne Donald, University of Alberta; Marie Battiste, University of Saskatchewan; Rainey Gaywish, University of Manitoba; Cam Willett, Laurentian University; and Verna Billy-Minnabarriet.

History of CASIE

The idea of an Aboriginal constituent association of the Canadian Society for the Study of Education was discussed during the Aboriginal assemblies scheduled as part of the CSSE conference program agenda since 1998. The CSSE 1998 conference identified Merle Richards (Brock University) as chairing the assembly at which time the idea of developing terms of reference, constitutional items, membership, and assembly aspirations would take place. Laara Fitznor (OISE/UT) co-chaired the meeting which resulted in a discussion of the needs and aspirations for an association and decision to ensure that at minimum an Aboriginal assembly should be scheduled in each upcoming CSSE conference program until an association was formed to include the leadership of Aboriginal/ Indigenous faculty. It was hoped that during this process that a critical mass of individuals interested in such an association would eventually become a reality. Over the next few years a number of interested faculty, students, researchers, and practioners both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal met during the scheduled times to continue with the conversation to form an association. During the past few years Dwayne Donald (University of Alberta), Laara Fitznor (University of Manitoba) and Marie Battiste (University of Saskatchewan), Joann Archibald (University of British Columbia) were among other CSSE members who committed as a working group to see an association formed that would provide a space for the sharing of Aboriginal/ Indigenous education and research. Finally, the work resulted in the invitation of the CSSE leadership to formalize the CASIE association by presenting a constitution, names of executive, and membership to the 2008 CSSE AGM for ratification. At the pre-conference meeting Joann Archibald (University of British Columbia) and Marie Battiste (University of Saskatchewan) chaired the proceedings to firm up CASIE by-laws, membership, hopes and desires for the association, and to elect an executive committee. Once these critical pieces were confirmed, the next step was to present a motion to the CSSE AGM for ratification that the Canadian Association for the Study of Indigenous Education become a constituent association of the Canadian Society for the Study of Education. The motion was carried.